7 ways you can get your starbucks fix on the keto diet

Good news, though: You don't have to give up your beloved 'bucks orders. There are plenty of options out there so you can stay keto and enjoy your fave morning (or afternoon, or evening) pick-me-up in the process.

Overall, you want to stick with four simple rules, says Julie Upton, R.D., co-founder of Appetite for Health: First, order sugar-free options, since sugar = carbs. Next, opt for heavy cream over regular milk (again, lactose is another carb). And then consider adding unsweetened nut milks like almond or coconut to drinks.

But those are just the basics. Here are some specific drinks—based on your specific needs (and mood)—that are still totally keto-friendly.

Black coffee's always a safe bet, but if you can't stomach that...

[No available link text]

Black coffee - hot, iced, or cold brew - is always going to be a winner in the keto department but it’s a little...intense.

Still, it’s calorie-free with no sugar, which is definitely keto, Upton points out. "At two to five calories per serving, coffee (brewed, espresso, or instant) simply does not have enough carbohydrates to get someone off track of their keto diet," says Scott Keatley, R.D., of Keatley Medical Nutrition Therapy.

If you just can’t have yours straight up, it’s 100 percent okay to add heavy cream and a flavoring like cinnamon or sugar-free syrup. If you need a little sweetener (fair), bypass the sugar and try a little stevia. “Sugar subs that have no calories or carbs can fit on the diet,” Upton explains

If you need something hot and sweet…

[No available link text]

Sure, you can be on your keto A-game on most days, but sometimes you just need a good, comforting cup of something warm and sweet.

You can do an Americano (a.k.a., espresso and water) and add heavy cream and stevia, order a cappuccino or flat white with heavy cream instead of milk, get a mocha with half heavy cream and half water (to create a “milk”), or have a latte with an unsweetened nut milk and add your own flavoring.

"The high fat and low sugar content of coconut milk can work on a keto diet if factored into the total daily allowance," says Beth Warren, R.D.N., founder of Beth Warren Nutrition and author of Secrets of a Kosher Girl. Also, heavy cream has a high fat and low sugar content, making it great for keto, she adds.

If you hate coffee but go to Starbucks for the ‘gram…

[No available link text]

Sure, not everyone is into coffee, but Starbucks clearly has some cool drinks that look amazing on Instagram. If you’re just going for the likes, you can DIY a pink drink that looks awesome in pics.

Plenty of people have shared a variation of this on Instagram, but it basically involves mixing Starbucks’ passion fruit iced tea with a few pumps of sugar-free vanilla syrup, and cream. You can have it blended or just over ice. Voila!

“This doesn’t have a lot of carbs so it would fit,” Upton says. Keatley agrees. "One cup of herbal tea has about 0.5 grams of carbohydrate per eight-ounce serving, the sugar-free vanilla syrup has so little carbohydrate content that it can state zero on any packaging, and heavy whipping cream has about one gram of carbohydrate per ounce," he says. "At the same time, it has almost 100 calories which can help you meet your macro targets."

If you’re more of a basic tea person…

[No available link text]

Any Starbucks hot or iced tea, without sweetener, is a safe bet, Upton says. Or you could get a chai-brewed tea and add some heavy cream to the mix. (Just make sure to ask for brewed chai vs. the stuff they pour out of a box - that has sugar in it.) Be wary, though: Some of their blended teas and tea lattes (even if you sub in cream) are off-limits since they contain sugar, Keatley says.

If you’ve got a reward to use up (or just want a treat)...

[No available link text]

Getting a Starbucks reward feels almost as good as winning the lottery, and you don’t want to blow it on something basic like black coffee. If you have a reward that you can’t wait to spend, try asking a barista to mix up a keto-friendly Frappucino. Start with the basics: Order a Frapp made with unsweetened almond, coconut milk, or heavy cream, and whatever sugar-free flavoring is your pleasure (vanilla, caramel, hazelnut... there are a bunch to choose from). “Keto is about cutting carbs and not limiting fat,” Upton says. “That’s why cream and coconut milk are okay.

If you’re grabbing your breakfast to go…

[No available link text]

Clearly the bagel, croissant, and banana bread aren’t going to fly, but their bacon and gruyere sous vide egg bites are a solid high-fat, low-carb option, Warren says.

Per serving: 310 cal, 22 g fat (14 g sat), 9 g carbs, 2 g sugar, 600 mg sodium, 0 g fiber, 19 g protein.

If you need a quick snack…

[No available link text]

Starbucks has several protein boxes that are solid for when you’re on the go, but most also contain fruit (carbs) and crackers (totally obvious carbs), Upton says.

Still, that doesn’t mean they can’t fill you up when you're keto. You can opt for the egg and cheese protein box and just skip the fruit and bread, or go for the Felino Uncured Italian Salami and Manchego box. Starbucks also usually has string cheese and Moon Cheese handy, both of which would make a solid snack.

[No available link text]